Australians Make It Four In A Row

USA's Kolohe Andino is through to the third Round in the Boys U16 division. Photo: ISA/Watts

With the swell really starting to fill in, and the sun taking it’s toll on the competitors, the 2009 Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championships has got the pedal to the floor. Day 3 of competition has set up the Girls U18 Round 3 heats, the Boys U18 Round 4 heats, and the Boys U16 Round 3 heats for Wednesday and beyond. The well-rounded nations are starting to rise to the top of the field as things are starting to get narrowed down and each heat is becoming more and more stacked with the best of the best young international surfers.

Though there is also still the repercharge, teams that are fairing very well right now are Brazil (all four Boys U16 and three Boys U18 still in), Hawaii (all four Boys U16 and all four Girls U18 sitll in), Australia (all four Girls U18 still in), South Africa (three Boys U18 still in and three Girls U18 still in), USA (three Girls U18 still in), and France (all four Girls U18 still in). Don’t get us wrong though, those medals are still up for grabs, as there is a lot of surfing still to be done.

Checking in with Team USA:

There’s been a few tough losses for the young Americans (Kaleigh Gilchrist, Ian Crane, and Evan Geiselman all in Round 2), but USA has still got a legitimate shot in each division. Courtney Conlogue, Lani Doherty, and Lakey Peterson are proving to be solid surfers on their backhand at the Ecuadorian left-hand point. Plus when Courtney breaks the nose off her board on her first wave in a heat (Round 2) and still wins the heat, you know she’s on her game. Conner Coffin and Kolohe Andino are seasoned competitors in international competition and are the two remaining Americans in the Boys U16 division. And the most experienced competitor on Team USA, Nat Young, is taking charge. The mix of a rippable fronthand point and the caliber of wins under his belt is a solid combination. But keep in mind, the Boys U18 Round 4 is stacked (Shaun Joubert, Nick Godfrey, Garrett Parkes, Dylan Goodale, and Maxime Huscenot, just to name a few), so it won’t be easy for the Californian. -Ryan Brower

Stay tuned to transworldsurf.com for daily updates, photos, and videos of the ISAs, or head to quiksilver.com/isa to watch the event live.

DAY 3 VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS FROM DAY 2

OFFICIAL ISA PRESS RELEASE:
(Salinas, Ecuador) March 31, 2009 – The surf picked up today, with the south swell making its first solid appearance at the third day of competition of the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championship in Salinas, Ecuador. The left point at La FAE offered super fun four-to-five foot surf all day and Under 18 Girls and Under 16 Boys finished Round two. The Under 18 Boys also faced off on the south end of the beach at the secondary contest area for Round three and for the grueling, “life or death,” repercharge rounds. Today saw some of the highest scores of the event as well as the first eliminations of the contest with 32 surfers exiting the competition.

“We had amazing waves today and so many of these kids really stepped up their game,” said web commentator and 1989 ASP world champion, Martin Potter. “We saw the future of surfing come to Ecuador.”

While all of the powerhouses have all team members still in the contest, 2005 event champions, Hawaii leads with nine surfers still in the main rounds. France and 2003 event champions Brazil are tied with eight a piece, while Australia has seven, the USA six and South Africa five.

The Hawaiians and the USA team went head-to-head in nearly every heat today. The teams have one of the greatest rivalries in surfing since the ISA recognizes Hawaii as its own nation because of the state’s historical contribution to the sport. In the end, Hawaii claimed the victory flag for the day but with all of USA still in contention it remains very much uncertain as to which team will finish higher at the end of the contest.

French Under 18 Girls surfer Canelle Bulard set the pace this morning, posting a combined 17.17 (out of 20), the second highest score of the entire contest. She kicked out early on her first two waves, each scoring under 1.0, but then found her spot on one of the larger sets, scoring an 8.0 as she demolished the wave on her forehand. As if that wasn’t enough, on Bullard’s next wave she posted a 9.17 to put the nail in the coffin.

“The heat was really good and I was able to catch two set waves,” said Bulard. “I felt like I surfed them to my ability. My coach told me where to sit and he was right, the waves came my way. Our team is really strong and working together. Everyone is giving me good advice.”

Last year’s gold medalist and Roxy team rider Laura Enever of Australia posted an impressive 16.66 total points for the win in heat five. Hawaiian Leila Hurst and USA’s Lakey Peterson each had high scores for first and second respectively in heat six, while South African Bianca Buitendag continued her quest for gold with her win in heat seven.

Brazil made a strong showing in the Under 16 division with three of their four surfers taking first. Tahitian Mihimana finished in second in heat two behind Brazil’s Caio Ibelli while the rest of the Tahitians Under 16 teammates were relegated to the repercharges.

Under 16 had a few share of big wins and big upsets. Moroccan surfer Ramzi Boukhiam overtook favored-Australian Matt Banting, along with local Ecuadorian Roberto Rodriguez and South African Slade Prestwich. Coming in third and fourth, Rodriguez and Prestwich still have a chance at the title if they are able to prevail through the repercharge heats.

The Moroccan team, representing one of the smaller surfing nations in the ISA, traveled with only two surfers to compete. Being without a coach or manager, the French team informally adopted the two and has been on the shore cheering on the Moroccans with the same gusto reserved for their teammates.

In the next heat, one of the closest contests of the day with all four surfers being separated by less than two points out of 20, USA’s Evan Geiselman and New Zealand’s Ben Poulter went down to Hawaiian Matt Costa and Costa Rican Jordan Hernandez. Geiselman and Poulter were unable to post a strong enough second score to advance. Matt Costa had the wave of the heat scoring an 8.83 which held up in spite of his low 2.60 second wave score.

The afternoon finished off with local Ecuadorian surfer Dominc Barona making history by becoming the first girl to make it to Round three of an ISA World Junior event. The home team couldn’t have been more excited and thrilled to learn that she had advanced.

Competition will resume tomorrow at 8:00am at Playa de las FAE beach in Salinas, Ecuador with round three of Under 18 Girls and Under 16 Boys, along with repercharge rounds for all three divisions.

For more information on the Quiksilver ISA World Junior Surfing Championship, LIVE web, free photos and on-demand video highlights, visit quiksilver.com/isa.